Publisher

Web site reviews

The previous article in this series had a specific focus - the use of the
concept of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) in food safety
management. This article takes a more general view of the food-related material
available on the Internet and thus does not focus on a specific topic. Instead,
the review revisits a number of major information providers to note some of the
things that are new since previous visits.

Web site reviews

1. UK Government sites

COT

The Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the
Environment (COT) has moved to increase the level of openness in its
deliberations. For the first time, it has released, for consultation, a draft of
a forthcoming report. This report focuses on food intolerance.

The draft report runs to 95 pages and, following an executive summary,
considers:

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dermal symptoms of adverse reactions to food;

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gastrointestinal symptoms of adverse reactions to food;

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respiratory symptoms of adverse reactions to food;

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anaphylaxis;

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effects of adverse reactions to foods on the central nervous system and
behaviour;

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other clinical effects that may be related to adverse reactions to foods;

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mechanisms;

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diagnosis, investigation and management;

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conclusions.

The document is clearly declared as a consultation draft that does not
represent the final views of the COT. It is also noted that the document should
not be "quoted or cited" - in order to respect this requirement the COT's
prospective conclusions have not been reported here (they are, of course,
available in the draft document).

It is a requirement under 1989 EU Directive on the Official Control of
Foodstuffs that each EU Member State provides an annual return detailing the
number and nature of food control inspections, prosecutions and convictions.

It should be noted that there are significant doubts about the utility of
these statistics which concentrate on enumerating inspection visits without the
necessity of due regard to the evaluation of risk and appropriate prioritisation
of attention onto those premises likely to present hazards to health or other
problems.

Food Labelling Bill

The process through which a Bill progresses into an agreed Act of Parliament
has been detailed previously with reference to the Food Standards Act 1999.

At the time of writing, the Food Labelling Bill is before Parliament. The
first reading was on 15 December 1999 with the second reading on 3 March 2000
(this reading was not completed and the Commons are to return to the Bill on 9
June 2000). The Bill makes provisions for consumers to be given more information
about the country of origin and standards of production of food on sale through
labelling, marking or in other ways.

This Bill is presented as a Private Members Bill (rather than being a part of
the Government's official legislative programme) and is most unlikely to reach
acceptance as an Act of Parliament.

The methodology to access Parliamentary documents described in detail with
respect to the Food Standards Act 1999 also applies here.

Meanwhile, the official UK Government guidelines on the labelling of foods
with respect to country of origin are available (along with other documents
relating to food labelling) at the following URL:

For some years, MAFF has published a series of Food Surveillance Papers that
summarise the results of surveillance exercises with respect to nutritional
quality of foods, authenticity, contamination levels or other matters relating
to the foods surveyed.

The general index for the surveillance reports is available at the following
URL:

The first two of the above four documents refer to artificial sweeteners
(Acesulfame K and cyclamates). The third document is concerned with the possible
introduction of a novel food that has not previously been eaten in Europe. The
fourth and final item concerns patulin, which is a mycotoxin that has commonly
been found to be present in apple juice, produced from poor quality ingredients;
the European Commission is presently developing legislation concerning mycotoxin
contamination.

3. International organisations

OECD

At the end of February 2000, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development held a major international conference in Edinburgh on "GM Food
Safety: Facts, Uncertainties, and Assessment". The UK Government hosted the
conference that was chaired by Sir John Krebs who was (at the time) about to
take up the post of Chairman of the UK's new Food Standards Agency.

During the conference, the proceedings were broadcast live on the Internet.

The event, was a part of the larger programme of work at the OECD to review
and report on aspects of biotechnology and food safety. This work is being
conducted in response to mandates from OECD Ministers and a request from leaders
of the Group of Eight industrial countries for a report on GM foods for
consideration at the Group's next meeting in Okinawa later in 2000.

The conference brought together, by invitation, approximately 400
participants. These were leading experts from academia, consumer and other
interest groups, industry, international organisations, developing countries,
OECD government representatives, and the press.

The purpose of the Conference was to achieve a constructive dialogue on the
safety of GM food, with an emphasis on the underlying science and on human
health. Key questions addressed included:

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What is the state of scientific understanding of the genetic modification of
foods, and what are the areas in which scientific uncertainty exists? What are
the current trends and future prospects? What are the potential benefits and
risks?

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How do the natural and social sciences help us understand and ensure the
safety of GM foods (for example, by comparing the health risks associated with
GM and conventional foods)? How do consumers perceive food safety risks?

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How is GM food safety assessed within existing regulatory frameworks?

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Is further international co-operation on scientific GM food safety issues
required

The texts of contributions to the conference can be downloaded as pdf files.

The chairman's summary report being prepared after the conference will also
be made available at the above URL.

The site also includes a full list of delegates.

If you have identified a Web site likely to be of interest to readers of British
Food Journal please contact the author of this series of articles at one of
the addresses given below. Acknowledgement will be given to those providing such
identification.